Wireless communication systems have developed through various generations, including a first-generation (1G) analog wireless phone service, a second-generation (2G) digital wireless phone service (including interim 2.5G and 2.75G networks), a third-generation (3G) high-speed data, Internet-capable wireless service, and a fourth-generation (4G) service (e.g., Long-Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). A fifth-generation (5G) service (e.g., New Radio (NR)) has been proposed that aims to provide higher capacity than current 4G services, thereby allowing more mobile broadband users per area unit and higher or unlimited data quantities to be consumed per user.
There is currently a push to enable unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), also referred to as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or, more commonly, as “drones,” to operate on commercial LTE networks and networks of the future, including 5G. The goal is to enable future UAS operations, such as Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS), as regulations evolve to permit them. The ability to fly beyond an operator's visual range could enable successful delivery, remote inspection, and exploration. Wireless technology can bring many advantages to drones such as ubiquitous coverage, high-speed mobile support, robust security, high reliability, and quality of service (QoS).
However, drones may operate at different radio conditions than devices on the ground, as interference conditions at higher altitudes differ from interference conditions on the ground. Furthermore, interference conditions can vary depending on the height at which a drone may be operating. In general, a wireless network may have difficulty differentiating between drones and ground devices and/or between drones operating at different heights. Furthermore, radio resource management (RRM) used to manage co-channel interference, radio resources, and other radio transmission characteristics in wireless communication systems may not be optimized to take into consideration the different radio conditions under which drones and ground devices operate.